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Hands delighted arrests made in shocking Fulham Murder Case

Greg Hands MP was delighted to be informed by the Borough Commander of Hammersmith & Fulham police today (Friday, 16th December) that detectives investigating the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Salim Coulter in Fulham have made two arrests.

Police say a 29-year-old man was arrested at an address in Wandsworth on suspicion of murder. At the same address a 27-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender. Both currently remain in custody pending further enquiries.

Local MP Greg Hands has led calls to catch the killer behind a shock ambush shooting outside a fast food restaurant in Fulham.

Trainee engineer Salim Coulter was gunned down as he left Jerky’s in Walham Grove – only yards from one of Fulham’s busiest shopping areas.

Detectives have launched a murder investigation and are continuing to probe leads in a bid to track down the lone gunman.

Police said the killer had been “lying in wait” for the 24-year-old to emerge from the restaurant before shooting him in the head.

Mr Hands, MP for Chelsea and Fulham, said he was “shocked and saddened” by the murder, which happened in a normally quiet residential street.

And in a direct appeal, he called for witnesses to help police track down the killer.

He said: “I urge anyone who can provide information on this crime – whether a local resident or a car driver, a pedestrian or a shopkeeper – to contact the Met.”

Salim, from White City, was shot as he climbed into the front passenger seat of a friend’s car after they stopped for food at the Caribbean restaurant last Monday (December 5).

Police and ambulance teams pronounced him dead as they arrived on the scene at around 9.30pm.

He was found slumped in the passenger seat of a silver and black Renault Captur with a single gunshot wound to the head.

The murder happened only yards from the junction with North End Road.

The owner of Jerky’s restaurant, where Salim and his friend had visited moments before the shooting, described the blood-spattered car seats outside his door.

“I didn’t get that close but you could see there was quite a lot of blood on the driver’s side. He was wearing a baseball cap and was slumped over the driver’s seat,” said the restaurant owner, who asked not to be identified.

“He was unresponsive, he’d been shot on the left hand side of his head next to his ear.

“I was right there with my staff. We were all shocked, we couldn’t understand what was going on.”

He said a member of staff rushed out to check Salim’s pulse but that it was clear he was already dead.

He also said Salim’s friend returned to the scene around 10 minutes later and was heard shouting “oh, my friend is dead”.

Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh, from the Met’s Homicide and Major Crime Command, is leading the murder investigation.

He said this part of Fulham was a low crime area and that the incident had “shocked the local community”.

“There is a strong neighbourly spirit in the area and I would encourage the very vigilant local community to contact police with anything that they saw during and after the attack,” he added.

Mr Hands said he had been contacted by several residents with “serious concerns” over safety but that police were “working hard to make sure our streets are safe”.